Ben Affleck's "Gone Baby Gone"

Say what you will about Ben Affleck. Sure, things got a little goofy during the J-Lo phase when he was posturing in her videos, their relationship became tabloid dross and their Gigli bombed. But I have interviewed a lot of dim-bulb actors and Affleck is not one of them. Let's not forget that this guy won an Oscar for writing 1997's Good Will Hunting with Matt Damon (I, for one, am hoping that they are actually collaborating on a new script).

And now Affleck is about to add director to his hypenated skill set with his directorial debut Gone Baby Gone, adapted from a novel from crime writer Dennis Lehane, who also penned Mystic River. Lehane writes a series about two Boston-based detectives--Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro--and Gone Baby Gone, the fourth installment, is a harrowing case about the kidnapping of a little girl. Kenzie (played by Ben's brother Casey, who was by far the best actor in Ocean's Thirteen) and Gennaro (played by the lovely Michele Monaghan), who are both business partners and lovers, are hired by the missing girl's mom. What sets this story apart from just being traditional genre material is Lehane's writing, which gives depth and edge to the characters and an exquisite sense of place (Affleck is also from Boston). And did I mention that it's incredibly suspenseful and violent?

The trailer for the film just came out, and from the limited footage, it looks as if Affleck is an steady, economical director in the vein of Clint Eastwood (Yeah, I know. Get ready for all those Mystic River comparisons). But the most interesting thing about the trailer is that Affleck isn't mentioned anywhere as the director. Does Miramax think that his name will turn off audiences? If that's true, I have to think that that will change when this movie comes out on October 19th. I have a feeling that this movie, which also stars Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris, is going to be really good.